|
Venona Dies
Tragedy struck again in 1919, in Delta, as Venona became deathly ill. She had broken her leg playing on a rope in their yard, to which a piece of wood had been attached. When the leg did not heal properly,James took Maud and Venona to Salt Lake City, but the doctors their offered no hope. Gangrene had set in. The family began fasting and praying for her return to health. And she began to rally. Once she seemed much better they went about their work with some degree of confidence. But her health once again deteriorated until she died on May 26, 1919. Lyle always felt guilt that her death had been due to the family's inattention once she had rallied. As a little 5 year old, she was much loved by her family.
James Uriah Saves Countless Lives
That same year the Spanish Influenza outbreak began to ravage the workers at the sugar factory. James Uriah and a Mr. Miller were assigned to escort those who were stricken with influenza to the hospital. He tells the story of saving lives:
"Yeah, the sugar campaign. Well, the men was all ready and they started coming down with flu. And so Barley come and asked me and Miller if we'd escort them down to hospital from the sugar factory. And they filled up the hospital and then they filled up the big hotel that was situated there. And then there was no other place to go, only the dormitories. We had 22 dormitories and they let them just for 4 men each dormitory. Each one was for four men. And we filled them up. When we first started, why they told us not to give them nothing but milk. But they was all dying no matter what they gave them. They was dying. So, we said, 'Well, we'll give them whatever they ask for, no matter what it is. They're going to die anyway.'
"The first one we took down he said he wanted a beefsteak, rare, he said, as big as a plate. So I said, 'Well I'll go over and get it while you're fixing him up here.' I went over and got it and went back. There was two of them. The other wanted a bottle of whiskey. Didn't have nothing but moonshine. So I got him the meat and the whiskey for the other one.
"Come back around with a couple more, we asked them how they was feeling. They was feeling pretty good, but they wanted another bottle and they wanted another beefsteak. So we got them it for them the same. I told Miller he'd get it this time. So when we went back, the others they wanted about the same thing, something they told us not to let them have. No matter what they asked for we give it to them.
"So when we come back the third time, these two we got in first was gone. And we got it back up to the mill the next time when we was up there, they was weak but they was ready to go to work. So from that time on so long as the flu lasted, I can't remember just how long it lasted, we'd take them down anything they wanted. No matter what it was we'd get it for them. We never lost a case. They all got well.
"Every one we took to the hospital and the other places there was doctors was working on them, they all died. I don't think there was any of them ever got well. They gave them the milk and that killed them.
"We was telling the superintendent about it and he said, 'Well,' he says, 'We'll have to report it to the doctors.' He said, 'It's the doctor's fault we're losing all of our men.' So he called them up on the phone and told them about it and they come right over to see us. And they wanted to know just what we'd done and we told them exactly what we'd done. We hadn't lost a case, so from that time on they started giving them what they wanted.
" He said, 'Well the doctor says last night there was a young fellow in there and he cried for wine, from the time he come in till he died, and I told the nurse not to give it to him. Next morning he was dead.' He said, 'Now, see, if I'd give him the wine, it'd have saved his life. No doubt.' Any thing that they craved was what was going through them. So we never lost a case all the time we was there.
"There was a big German; he was a tinsmith. He could make anything out of tin that you could imagine. And he was big and strong, and I said to him one evening, 'John, you'd better take something to guard off this flu.' He was going right on working and had lots of stuff to make. He said, 'I'm never afraid of nothing. Never sick in my life.' Next day he was coming around through, you could tell just by seeing him why he had that flu. You know their eyes begin to look hazy and dull and you could tell. And I said, 'John, come out and get in the car. We're going to take you down and treat you.'
"'No, there's nothing the matter with me.'
"'Yes, there is. I can see it. You're sick. You're getting sick.'
"'No,' he says, 'I ain't. I'm going to stay right on work.'
"I said, 'Well, I'll call around when we come back again.' We drove around, and it wasn't too long, you know, we had 500 men there. It didn't take long getting a car load and taking them down there. Come back and went over there to him and I tell you he was beginning to look pale. I asked him if he wasn't wanting to go.
"'No,' he says, 'I don't want to go to the hospital.'
"I says, 'Go ahead and trust these fellows. Go to the hospital.' And they took him down to the hospital and he was dead in the morning.
"That's when we was out [an enemy] with Germany. And he had to report every week where he was. So, when they come for the report that week, he was gone. And you know he had a money belt on him with $5000 in it.
"So that flu went on."
Flu in the Family
Maud said she got the same flu while she was gone with Venona to Salt Lake City. Lyle got it and barely survived his hospital stay. The flu was so terrible and widespread it wiped out whole families in some places. Lawrence and Vendon suffered terribly with it in Oakland. Vendon was so sick Lawrence had to support them both. Leah depended on a dear friend to nurse her back to health.
Financial Blues
After Venona's death, the family moved to a store home right next to the sugar factory. James' ex-wife, Leah was now in San Francisco, and corresponding with Maud. James Uriah went back to Enterprise, from where he wrote on Jan. 13, 1920. He had the financial blues. He couldn't raise any cash in the depressed Enterprise area. Their home was apparently in terrible condition. His letter as follows:
"Yours of the 11th just received. Glad to hear from you and learn you were all well. Hope this finds you the same as if leaves me. Well, dear, it is very cold here and I have the blues as I don't know what to do. The party did not come at all from St. George and in fact I don't think they want to trade at all and there is not a thing to do here and everybody seems to be out of money, just trading around one thing for another. I don't know how to get a dollar in cash. So I don't see any chance to sell anything at all here so what am I to do dearest.? It sure looks like hard times for us. Do you think we can live at all and go out on the desert.? If so, I will go see what I can find over there. But I am sure up a stump. Never before did things look so dark to me, although we must look for hard times the way the world is at the present time. But if we can exist we will be doing well, is the way I see things now.
"I stopped off to Milford and paid the land commissioner to send me some blanks, but he has not MORE
|
